The Truth About The Royals Who Thought They Were Made Of Glass
One of the great joys of childhood is unbridled imagination, left to run riot over an otherwise everyday sort of world. The living room floor is an ocean — we’re dolphins, so let’s swim across it! We’re horses, and the lawn is our pasture where we run free! And let’s not forget the floor being lava. Maybe we have to be kangaroos to get from spot to spot safely.
There’s a nifty line between imagination and mental illness. It isn’t always clear — we all have those relatives or friends who might seem just a bubble off plumb, and maybe they’re really artistic and maybe they’re really interesting and maybe they’ll stop calling at 3 in the morning to share their newest idea for the Great American Novel. Pretending, every so often, sidesteps from imagination to what’s perceived as reality. Sometimes a reality nobody else encounters.
Take, for instance, the phenomenon of “the glass delusion,” which seemed to afflict a number of people in early modern Europe — around the 15th to 17th Centuries, says Psychology Today. The individuals so afflicted were convinced that their bodies were made of glass — and not the bulletproof kind of glass that might actually be helpful if, say, you’re a professional skateboarder. Sometimes the individuals were worried about a specific body part; sometimes it was internal organs. It became so common as to almost appear to be an epidemic.
The delusion convinced some that they were glass vessels, like pitchers
The delusion seemed to strike wealthy, educated males, though women also suffered from it. As History tells it, Princess Alexandra Amelie, daughter of the “recently abdicated” King Ludwig I of Bavaria, was about 23 when she became convinced — or discovered; your choice — that within her was a full-sized piano made of glass, which she’d swallowed as a child. And now, any sudden movement or sharp impact would shatter the instrument. (That could not have been good.)
One of the more prominent examples was King Charles VI, who ruled France for 40 years in the late 14th and early 15th Centuries. How Stuff Works reports that he was convinced that he was made of glass and might easily break. Full disclosure: Charles was also known as Charles the Mad. (As in, not sane.) Other people were more specific: they were in reality a vase, or a pitcher, or some other glass receptacle.
Why glass? One theory is that glass was relatively rare and quite valuable during that period. If there’s a delusion of grandeur, it might well manifest itself in a delusion of a glass personage. Ancient Origins suggests it was a manifestation of a “fear of fragility and possibly a desire to transcend normal human existence.” Oddly, the delusion seems to have stopped occurring after about 1830, says the BBC, though everyone once in a while a case pops up even today.
57 thoughts on “The Truth About The Royals Who Thought They Were Made Of Glass”
Leave a Reply
The Mystery Of The Lost Victorio Peak Treasure
This Gross Ingredient Was Once Used As A Popular Teeth Whitener
The Sad Truth About The Man Who Advocated For Snake-Handling Rights
The Most Bizarre Unsolved Mysteries Of The Wild West
Scientist Gets Brain Implant To Cure His Alcoholism
The Truth About The Multi-Million Dollar McDonald's Monopoly Scam
45 Year-Old Tortoise Rescued After Starting Fire In Owner's Home
Toilet Cobras Terrorize Jakarta Citizens
People Who Vanished While On Vacation
Memes That Changed People's Lives For The Better
buy fenofibrate 160mg online cheap buy tricor online cheap buy generic fenofibrate online
cheap tadalafil 10mg sildenafil otc sildenafil drug
buy zaditor 1mg without prescription zaditor 1 mg tablet buy generic imipramine 25mg
buy generic minoxidil over the counter flomax canada buying ed pills online
order precose 25mg online cheap order prandin 2mg fulvicin 250 mg cost
buy generic aspirin for sale order levofloxacin 250mg pill zovirax canada
order melatonin 3mg pills order norethindrone 5mg generic danazol sale
buy dipyridamole generic dipyridamole 25mg us buy pravastatin generic
buy duphaston 10mg pills purchase duphaston generic empagliflozin 10mg
buy florinef without prescription purchase fludrocortisone generic order loperamide 2 mg generic
buy prasugrel 10mg generic tolterodine 2mg price detrol 2mg price
order pyridostigmine for sale purchase mestinon without prescription cost rizatriptan 5mg
cheap ferrous sulfate 100 mg ascorbic acid tablet buy betapace 40 mg pills
buy cheap generic xalatan buy latanoprost online cheap purchase rivastigmine
vasotec ca where to buy vasotec without a prescription purchase lactulose generic
overnight cialis delivery cheap sildenafil without prescription sildenafil 100mg pills for men
order telmisartan 80mg generic cheap molnunat molnunat pill
cenforce without prescription purchase chloroquine online cheap generic chloroquine
oral modafinil 100mg buy generic phenergan deltasone 40mg pills
purchase nexium for sale oral topiramate 200mg order topiramate 200mg pill
order astelin 10ml without prescription irbesartan cheap buy generic avalide
order sumatriptan 50mg generic sumatriptan oral buy avodart 0.5mg sale
order allopurinol 100mg generic order allopurinol 300mg generic rosuvastatin 10mg over the counter
buy zantac 300mg buy ranitidine medication buy cheap generic celebrex
buspirone brand buspirone brand buy amiodarone generic
buy flomax how to buy tamsulosin zocor 20mg canada
purchase motilium pill where to buy sumycin without a prescription tetracycline 500mg without prescription
spironolactone generic order aldactone 25mg online order proscar without prescription
buy an essay online cheap help writing papers essays for sale online
fluconazole us oral diflucan cipro cheap
sildenafil price sildenafil pharmacy order estrace 1mg without prescription
metronidazole 400mg drug buy keflex 125mg generic keflex 125mg without prescription
lamictal buy online lamictal pills order mebendazole without prescription
buy generic clindamycin free samples of ed pills buy erectile dysfunction drugs
nolvadex online order buy cheap symbicort order budesonide online
buy retin buy tadalis no prescription order avanafil 200mg online
buy generic ceftin over the counter order methocarbamol pills cheap robaxin
where to buy tadacip without a prescription order tadalafil 20mg sale order indomethacin 50mg pill
trazodone online clindamycin buy online purchase clindamycin generic
generic aspirin purchase aspirin without prescription live dealer blackjack
purchase lamisil recommended you read casino gambling
letter editing paper writing online free online blackjack no download
write paper online writing essay>buying assignments>write my paper reviews buy suprax pill
buy rocaltrol paypal order labetalol 100 mg pill tricor buy online
buy trimox 500mg online cheap order amoxicillin 250mg sale purchase clarithromycin generic
buy acne pills cause of pimples in adults buy oxcarbazepine pills for sale
catapres generic buy tiotropium bromide 9 mcg online order tiotropium bromide generic
order uroxatral without prescription brand alfuzosin medications that cause gerd symptoms
minocycline 100mg pill requip 1mg tablet buy generic ropinirole over the counter
telehealth consultation for cpap machine hair loss pills boots fda approved weight loss medications
provera tablet order generic provera 10mg microzide 25mg usa
brand periactin 4 mg buy ketoconazole 200mg sale buy ketoconazole generic
where to buy fungus clear best antifungal supplements best medication for high blood pressure
cymbalta brand purchase duloxetine generic provigil 100mg canada
side effects of ulcer medication best meds for stomach ulcer will tylenol help ease uti pain
promethazine 25mg drug order stromectol 12mg pills ivermectin 12mg otc
birth control refill online who should not take cialis how to slow down ejaculation